Congress
warns rebel nomineesShimla, April 22The AICC general secretary, Mr
Satyajit Gaekwad, today while admitting that some deserving candidates
were denied ticket for contesting the election for the Shimla Municipal
Corporation, said they could be compensated with better placements in
the Congress organisation.

Meeting
water shortage indigenous wayHamirpurWith the advent of summer several
areas of Himachal Pradesh, especially Hamirpur, Kangra and Mandi
districts face acute water shortage. This is despite the fact that
Himachal Pradesh is known as hill State with high hills on its eastern
side.

HP
policies anti-poor: VirbhadraMandi, April 22Former Chief Minister and CLP
leader Virbhadra Singh said the people of Himachal Pradesh were
disillusioned with the BJP-HVC government which has betrayed their
aspirations by enhancing domestic power rates, bus fare and water
charges and imposing user charges in hospitals.

SC notice
to DhumalNew Delhi, April 22The Supreme Court today issued
notices to the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal on a
PIL seeking quashing of the appointment of retired Judge A.L. Vaidya as
member of the State Human Rights Commission as it was done in violation
of the law.

Give
pension to Dalit widows: AkademiChamba, April 22The Bharatiya Dalit Sahitya Akademi
has alleged that on one hand the government is concerned about the
betterment of social and economic conditions of widows but on the other
hand, the widows of retired municipal council employees are deprived of
the pension benefits.

Pollution
board's order stayedShimla, April 22The Himachal Pradesh High Court
today stayed the action of the State Pollution Control Board, wherein
the board had cancelled the consent order given by it on February 28.

DC
supporting BJP: MorchaShimla, April 22The nine-party Loktantrik Morcha
has alleged that the Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, is providing tacit
support to the ruling BJP in the elections for the Shimla Municipal
Corporation.

11
kiosks gutted, mischief allegedNurpur, April 22A devastating fire which broke
out at Chogan bus stand here last night reduced 11 kiosks to ashes.
The fire engulfed the wooden kiosks before it could be controlled. The
local residents controlled the fire within an hour.

Shimla, April 22
The AICC general secretary, Mr Satyajit Gaekwad, today while admitting that some deserving candidates were denied ticket for contesting the election for the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC), said they could be compensated with better placements in the Congress organisation.

Mr Gaekwad, who along with a former PCC chief, Mr Sat Mahajan, a sitting MLA, Thakur Kaul Singh, and Mrs Anita Verma, was talking to mediapersons here, said that ticket could not be given to some aspirants on the consideration of age, delimitation of wards and caste.

Only six previous councillors in the House of 24 have been given ticket and the others were new faces. The tickets were given on the basis of the chances of winning of the candidates.

He urged the rebels to withdraw, failing which disciplinary action would be taken against them. The CLP leader, Mr Virbhadra Singh, and the PCC chief, Mrs Vidya Stokes, have also made efforts to woo the rebels back.

Mr Gaekwad, who is also AICC observer for the SMC elections, said senior leaders of the party in Himachal Pradesh should sit together to clear misunderstandings among them through a dialogue.

Disputes over the organisational elections would be settled shortly by the high command.

He said that the Chief Minister would be chosen by the AICC chief, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, if the Congress came to power in the Assembly elections next year.

Mr Gaekwad said the credit for keeping Shimla clean went to the Congress-controlled SMC.

The Rs 50-crore sewerage of OPEC was also initiated by the previous Congress government in the state.

He accused the ruling BJP of having starved the SMC of funds because of narrow-mindedness.

Meanwhile, a spokesman of the PCC, Mr O.P. Rattan, said there was tremendous response to the public meetings being addressed by Congress leaders in connection with the SMC election.

He claimed that the people were annoyed with the performance of the BJP government which had promised a clean administration and transparency before the elections, but all records of corruption were broken ever since they came to power.

Their own ministers made public statements of nepotism, corruption and regionalism against the Dhumal government.

Mr Rattan alleged that the BJP was indulging in politics of convenience, bypassing its policies and programmes, just to remain in power.

Hamirpur
With the advent of summer several areas of Himachal Pradesh, especially Hamirpur, Kangra and Mandi districts face acute water shortage. This is despite the fact that Himachal Pradesh is known as hill State with high hills on its eastern side. Water from the melting of ice too becomes in sufficient to quench thirst of the people due to scanty snowfall and also failure of the successive state governments to lift water available from the rivers flowing through the state for want of adequate funds.

However, in Hamirpur district and Sarkaghat subdivision of Mandi and the Changer areas of Kangra district people depend upon “khatri” waters for daily needs.

“Khatris” are HAND HEWN CAVES. “Khatris” can be found on both sides of roads in the Bamsan area of the Hamirpur district, the area represented by Himachal Chief Minister Prof Prem Kumar Dhumal in the state Assembly. It is surprising that this system of collecting water is in use in Hamirpur district, known as Veer Bhoomi due to bravery role displayed by Jawans from here on the front while fighting the enemy.

Water from these sources is clean, cool and fit for drinking, say local people. The medical officers working in the area dispute this claim of theirs.

Most of these “khatris” are kept under lock and key as every family has its own “khatri”. Since there are no permanent water sources in the area, people used to wait for the arrival of rains for water needs.

“Khatris” are constructed by digging rocks which are permanent sources of water. Once these ‘khatris’ are dug, these are provided with iron gates which put under locks. There are two types of ‘khatris’ found in Hamirpur, Mandi and Kangra districts. In one type of ‘khatris’ rainwater is collected in rainy season by harnessing water from roofs of houses with the help of tins and collected in ‘khatris’. This water is mainly for used the washing of clothes, utensils and quenching thirst of animals.

In other type of ‘khatris’, only seeping water is collected and it is used for drinking purposes. These ‘khatris’ are cleaned every year in winter or in early summer season and chlorinated properly.

The Himachal government has finalised a big plan with the help of foreign aid to end water shortage in this region of the state, says Chief Minister, Professor Prem Kumar Dhumal. A Rs 55 crore lift drinking water supply scheme would become a reality in the coming years, as the work on the lifting of water from Beas river will start soon. I want to solve the water problem of the local people and help them lead happy and prosperous life, the Chief Minister adds.

However, due to sudden fall in water table, the state government has decided to chlorinate all water sources, available with the people including the ‘khatris’.

Reports say that the people in Hamirpur, Kangra and Mandi districts have started cleaning ‘khatris’ and to chlorinate them to store safe water there with an eye on the drought like situation they are facing this season. Many others have also started digging ‘khatris’ as they feel that these may be beneficial for them in the coming days and it is useful to have more ‘khatris’ at disposal when the state government is also going to help them financially for the construction of new ones.

Mandi, April 22
Former Chief Minister and CLP leader Virbhadra Singh said the people of Himachal Pradesh were disillusioned with the BJP-HVC government which has betrayed their aspirations by enhancing domestic power rates, bus fare and water charges and imposing user charges in hospitals.

He declared that the Congress government on coming to power would undo all anti-poor measures taken by the government.

Addressing a big Congress rally at Basa last evening in the Nachan constituency of Gohar subdivision in the interior of this district, he alleged that the BJP had deviated from the obligation of a democratic government to safeguard the welfare of the people and mitigate their suffering. It had aggravated the woes of the people by levying taxes, stalling development and spreading corruption. He maintained that development and corruption could not go together.

The former Chief Minister alleged that corruption in the state had assumed alarming proportions. Jobs were on sale and merits was blatantly ignored. He described the Subordinate Services Board as a den of corruption. It might be the Punjab pattern of corruption, he commented.

Mr Virbhadra Singh also ridiculed the statements of HVC supremo Sukh Ram for his “funny stand” that he did not approve of the anti-people policies of the government. He was misleading the people. The HVC was equally accountable for the omissions and commissions of the government.

He accused the state Chief Minister of treating the political rivals as his personal “enemies” and misusing government machinery to victimise and harm them.

Alleging that employees of the state were being victimised, he said transfers were being made of a consideration and as many as 1,75,000 employees has to suffer hardships due to mid-term transfers.

About the officials who were acting as ploys in the hands of the BJP government, he said while they were bound to abide by the directions of the government of the time, they should act within the framework of law.

He said the BJP which used to criticise the Congress for raising loans had brought the state on the brink of bankruptcy by raising a whooping Rs 10,000-crore loan. He praised the Union Minister, Mr Shanta Kumar, once his arch enemy, for speaking the “stark truth” on the events in Gujarat and asked the people to see the irony of the “party of fascists” which forced him to apologise for telling the truth.

Demanding dismissal of the Modi government and imposition of President’s rule, Mr Virbhadra Singh refuted the argument of the BJP that violence, bloodshed and burning of people alive in Gujarat was the internal matter of the state.

A former Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha and sitting MLA, Thakur Kaul Singh, alleged that the government had burdened poor people with an additional Rs 18 crore by enhancing electricity rates and given concession of power tariff to the industrialists to the tune of Rs 25 crore.

New Delhi, April 22
The Supreme Court today issued notices to the Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal on a PIL seeking quashing of the appointment of retired Judge A.L. Vaidya as member of the State Human Rights Commission as it was done in violation of the law.

The petitioner alleged that Mr Vaidya was appointed as a member of the State Human Rights Commission on ceasing to be the Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Administrative Tribunal on his retirement on October 3, 2001. Before becoming Chairman of the tribunal, Mr Vaidya was a Judge of the state high court.

The petitioner said appointment of Mr Vaidya as member of the commission was violative of Section 11 of the Administrative Tribunal Act, 1985, which prohibited appointment of the Chairman of the tribunal in any government job except for other tribunals.

The petitioner said as the member of a State Human Rights Commission draws salary and allowances from the government, the retired chairman of the tribunal could not have taken over the new posting.
PTI

Chamba, April 22
The Bharatiya Dalit Sahitya Akademi has alleged that on one hand the government is concerned about the betterment of social and economic conditions of widows but on the other hand, the widows of retired municipal council employees are deprived of the pension benefits. In a press note issued here today, Mr Purushotam Chandra, secretary of the akademi, urged the Chief Minister to consider the “genuine” demands of retired employees of the council and corporations of Himachal Pradesh for allowing pension to the widows of deceased municipal employees on Punjab pattern.

Mr Chandra alleged that Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe employees of various municipal committees and corporations had not been granted any pension benefits after their retirement.

Mr Chandra accused the state government of step-motherly treatment meted out to the safai-karamcharis. He said most of the retired servants of the committees and corporations had either died or were at the verge of death and added that the widows of such retired servants were in extremely miserable condition.

He further alleged the widows of safai-karamcharis had approached the authorities of the state government time and again but no relief had been granted to them in this regard so far. He said some of the widows has passed away while grappling with their woes.

Shimla, April 22
The Himachal Pradesh High Court today stayed the action of the State Pollution Control Board, wherein the board had cancelled the consent order given by it on February 28. The order of Member Secretary was stayed by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice W.A. Shishak and Mr Justice L.S. Panta on a petition filed by Mr Surinder Vasal, a brick-kiln owner of Tukri village in Jawali tehsil. He had alleged that they had a brick-kiln in the village and wanted to establish another brick-kiln, for which they got a no-objection certificate from the pollution control board and also submitted the relevant documents with the District Food and Supply Officer, Kangra.

But on February 28 the Member Secretary withdraw the consent without affording the opportunity of hearing to the parties.

While staying the order passed by the Member Secretary, the court also issued notices to the Secretary Science and Technology, and District Food and Supply Officer, Kangra.

Shimla, April 22
The nine-party Loktantrik Morcha has alleged that the Deputy Commissioner, Shimla, is providing tacit support to the ruling BJP in the elections for the Shimla Municipal Corporation. Mr Tekinder Singh, a spokesman of the Morcha, today claimed that the DC, who is Returning Officer, had allowed inclusion of "fictitious" voters, despite objections raised by Opposition parties.

He claimed that at least 250 “fictitious” voters were included in the Summer Hill area (Ward 6), although ample proof was provided against them. Occupants of four hostels of Himachal Pradesh University outside the limits of the Municipal Corporation had been included in the voters list.

Nurpur, April 22
A devastating fire which broke out at Chogan bus stand here last night reduced 11 kiosks to ashes. The fire engulfed the wooden kiosks before it could be controlled. The local residents controlled the fire within an hour. By the time a fire brigade from Dharamsala arrived the fire had been put out.

The fire victims alleged that the incident was the result of a mischief. These kiosks were unauthorised. Although the victims are not entitled for any relief but they have appealed to the state government to take steps for their rehabilitation. Mr
R. P. Shandal, Tehsildar, said after visiting the spot that a loss of Rs 4.5 lakh had been assessed due to the fire.

Mr Rakesh
Pathania, local MLA and Chairman of the HP Tourism Development Corporation, while expressing his sympathies with the fire victims, said all possible efforts would be made for their rehabilitation. Mr Sat Mahajan, a former PCC chief, also expressed his sympathies and demanded relief for those affected.